


Above All

by BinaryIsForRobots



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Assassination Plot(s), Creepy Fluff, Gen, I wanted to kill Danzo for a change, Tius you made me do this, Uchiha Itachi Being a Good Brother, Wish Fulfillment
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-17
Updated: 2019-11-17
Packaged: 2021-02-08 00:23:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,288
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21466987
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BinaryIsForRobots/pseuds/BinaryIsForRobots
Summary: Itachi has been taught his whole life that the safety of the village is more important than anything.or anyone.
Comments: 17
Kudos: 149





	Above All

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Tius](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tius/gifts).

> This was all Tius' fault!

Itachi has always been a good child.

Always does what he’s told. Always listens to his elders. Always got top marks in school, diligently studying and memorizing the material he’d need to remember as a shinobi. In particular, he remembers Ninja Guideline three:  _ A shinobi will not hesitate to do what is necessary to protect his village. _

So, it was an easy decision for him. Once he realized what was going on, he had no doubt in his mind as to what must be done.

Surely, even Danzo could see that it was the most logical course of action. After all, it was he who continuously sabotaged any attempts at diplomacy with Itachi’s clan, and it was his decisions that led to the Uchiha’s growing discontent. And, after all, it was Danzo that made it so crystal clear to Itachi that the village was to be held in the highest regard- above even the orders of Itachi’s highest superior (barring the Hokage himself).

There is no malice in what Itachi is doing. No hatred, no anger. Only the cold, unflinching logic instilled within him by a lifetime of careful indoctrination. He pours over the pages of research Orochimaru left behind, using his Sharingan to commit each word to memory.

It’s a trivial matter to sneak what he needs, so that nobody is suspicious. To take a quick detour on a mission to gather the little white flowers he’ll need. And an even more trivial one to mix up the little flask of powder that will hopefully finally put an end to all the contention between the village and the Uchiha.

Danzo, for his part, doesn't suspect a thing. He foolishly trusts Itachi when he arrives for their meeting, accepting the tea Itachi prepares and offers to him without a hint of mistrust.

(Though, why would he mistrust Itachi? Itachi is such a good boy- always obedient, always quiet. He never talks back or questions him. Of course Danzo would trust him.)

Like usual, Itachi sits obediently, nursing his own cup of tea while Danzo lectures him. Unlike usual, however, Itachi isn’t really paying attention to what he’s being told. Instead, he listens to the clock ticking away on the wall behind him, counting the seconds, waiting for the poison to do its work.

True to Orochimaru’s research, once he’s counted two hundred twenty-four seconds, Danzo’s speech abruptly begins to slur together. His one exposed eye darts around, confused and undoubtedly a little disoriented.

And- even though Itachi tries his best to detach himself from what he’s doing, he can’t help the small smile that crosses his face.

“Konoha doesn't need leaders who will sabotage what’s best for it,” he informs Danzo, in a flat, matter-of-fact tone. “If the roots of the tree are rotten, the whole tree will fall eventually- I can’t allow that to happen. I’m sure you understand.”

Danzo does, in fact, seem to understand what Itachi is saying. He tries to spout some accusatory words, but they just garble together in an incoherent mess. Itachi sits and watches, unruffled and unbothered; he only wonders if he can finish his tea before Danzo expires.

He wishes he’d brought sugar for it.

He remembers from his research that, once it’s started to work, the poison takes about five minutes to finish its job. So he counts away the seconds in his head, tuning out the ghastly noises Danzo makes while he dies. He fiddles with a loose lock of hair that’s fallen in his face (he’s got some split ends- maybe he’ll ask Mom to give him a trim when he gets home), watches the birds flit around outside.

“It’s such a lovely day,” he remarks, to nobody in particular. “I’m glad- Sasuke’s birthday is coming up soon, and I’d hate for it to rain on his birthday.

Danzo has gone awfully quiet now. Good. itachi sets his now-empty teacup down, and stretches out the crick in his neck.  


(Funny. Danzo isn’t a good-looking man by anyone’s metric, yet Itachi can’t help but think that his skin is such a lovely bluish color now. )

The door opens without warning; Itachi has no doubt who it is. Nobody but the Hokage himself would think of walking into Danzo’s office unannounced. 

“Good afternoon, Sandaime-sama,” he says, perfectly calmly. 

It takes a few moments for Hiruzen to register the scene before him. He freezes in place, the gears in his head whirling as he processes everything. 

“...what have you done?” He demands, his voice weak and hoarse from horror. 

“I solved the problem,” Itachi replies, flatly. “Danzo-sama won’t be able to ruin the peace talks between you and my clan anymore.”

Sarutobi stands rooted to the spot, like a rather stupid plant. So Itachi continues on.

“I hope you can understand why I did it, Sandaime-sama. Protecting the village is the most important thing, but Danzo-sama let himself be blinded by his hatred for us Uchiha. Well, that won’t be a problem now. Hopefully the clan will be able to come to a peaceful resolution now that he’s gone.”

The clock on the wall is the only sound in the room. Itachi finds himself quite annoyed that the man won’t speak.

“It’s my father’s day off today,” Itachi informs Hiruzen. “I’ll head back and inform him about what happened. I hope you and he can work out a peaceful solution soon."  


Hiruzen finally finds his voice.

“You just plan to walk out of here like you did nothing?!”

“That’s right.”

Itachi tilts his head, standing up and straightening his back.

“-Unless you think arresting the son of the head of the police is going to get you anywhere, that is.”

“...is that a threat?” Hiruzen asks, carefully.

“Of course not, Sandaime-sama,” Itachi answers, turning to face the man and bowing low. He peers up at him, and Sarutobi catches the crimson glow of the Sharingan through the dark curtain of Itachi’s hair.

“It’s a promise. I intend to protect Konoha from any threat. No matter what- or who.”

Even though Itachi is small ( _ tiny,  _ actually), he gives the impression that he towers over everything, and Hiruzen knows Itachi’s words are far from hollow.

(The proof of that is sitting behind Danzo’s desk right now, after all.)

Bowing one last time, Itachi leaves the office.

“Oh, the tea is still warm,” he adds, when he’s in the doorway. “I didn’t poison the whole thing, so if you'd like some, that's alright."

He closes the door behind him when he departs, leaving Hiruzen alone with his former friend’s corpse.

How thoughtful.

* * *

“Niisan?!”

Sasuke darts across the schoolyard, tackling Itachi in a crushing hug, eyes wide with excited disbelief.

“What’re you doing here?! I thought you said you were busy today!”

“I decided to call it quits early,” Itachi explains. “So let’s walk home together, okay?”

Sasuke’s eyes sparkle with glee. He grabs Itachi’s outstretched hand, breaking out in a grin from one ear to the other.

He chatters on ceaselessly while they walk, talking about all the minutiae of his day. Itachi listens politely, enjoying Sasuke’s unbridled enthusiasm for life. He reminds himself that this is the sort of thing he’s protecting- that innocent smile, the light in Sasuke’s eyes- he won’t let anyone steal them.

“-I think she might be the smartest girl in the world,” Sasuke says, his cheeks turning pink. “I wanna tell her I like her, but she’ll think I’m a dork…”

He looks up at Itachi, embarrassed.

“Niisan, how do I tell a girl I like her?”

Itachi snorts.

“That’s not really my department, Sasuke. See-”

He debates telling Sasuke for a moment, then decides it can’t do any harm.

“-I don’t really like girls that way.”

“Huh?”

Sasuke’s brow scrunches up.

“What’s that mean?” he asks.

“Well, it means I like boys, Sasuke.”

“You can do that?!”

Itachi laughs lightly.

“Well of course, dummy. There are girls that like other girls and boys that like other boys. Some people like both, and some people like neither one.”

“Oh!”

Sasuke grins all over again, with his newfound understanding.

“Do you think Sakura likes boys or girls?” he chirrups, his voice so very hopeful.

“I don’t know,” Itachi answers. “You’d have to ask her yourself.”

Sasuke pouts.

“She’ll think I’m weird.”

“What’s wrong with being weird?”

Sasuke has no rebuttal. Then, after a bit more silence-

“-which one am I, Niisan?”

Itachi laughs again.

“You’ll find out on your own time. For now you don’t have to worry.”

_ You don’t have to worry about  _ ** _anything._ **

“We’re home!” Sasuke calls out, throwing the door open and kicking off his shoes.

Mom pokes her head out of the laundry room, surprised.

“Oh? Itachi, you’re back early.”

Itachi nods, then turns to Sasuke.

“Hey, if you get all your homework done before dinner, I’ll take you out for ice cream after.”

“Alright!” he cries out, darting toward his room with determination.

Once his bedroom door slams shut, Itachi takes a breath.

“Can I talk to you and Dad for a minute?” he asks.

“Of course. Your father’s in the kitchen- I’ll be right there.”

True to her word, Itachi finds his father sitting at the kitchen table, coffee in one hand and some papers in the other.

(Dad always works so hard, even when he’s supposed to be off-duty.)

“You’re home?” Fugaku asks, raising an eyebrow. Itachi nods, sitting across from him and waiting for Mikoto to join them.

“What’s going on, Itachi?”

“Danzo-sama is dead.”

Fugaku chokes on his coffee. Mikoto gasps sharply.

“What-”

“Danzo-sama is dead. I killed him.”

His parents look at him, stunned. Itachi doesn't flinch.

“He won’t be able to ruin the peace talks between you and Sandaime-sama anymore. I hope this means you’ll be able to reach a resolution that benefits everyone.”

His mother and father glance at each other, then at their son, concern and worry creasing both their foreheads.

“Itachi, why-”

“He wanted me to kill the entire clan. I decided there was a better way- the death of one man is better than hundreds, right?”

Itachi’s parents look horrified.

“He wanted you to  _ what _ ?” Fugaku asks, his voice a tight whisper.

“He wanted to eliminate the entire clan,” Itachi confirms. “I decided there was a better course of action. Please don’t worry- Sandaime-sama knows, and I doubt I’ll be punished for it. I just thought you’d like to know.”

Fugaku puts a shaky hand on Itachi’s head.

“...That’s my boy,” he finally says, with a weak smile.

Itachi shuts his eyes, soaking up the praise with a smile of his own.

“I hope everything will work out from now on,” he says, sounding relieved. “I’d hate for something to happen.”

His parents cast troubled looks at each other, but Itachi doesn't seem to notice. He looks innocently at his mother and father, and when he speaks, he sounds happier than he’s been in months.

“Is it alright if Shisui and I go down to the river tomorrow?” he asks. “It’s been awhile since we’ve gotten together.”

“Of course,” Mikoto answers, not wanting to see that happy expression fade.

Itachi nods, looking as content as a well-fed kitten.

“I’m tired,” he says, with a heavy sigh. “I think I’ll take a nap before dinner.”

“Whatever you want, hon,” Mikoto assures him.

Itachi gladly retires to his own bedroom, crawling under the covers for some long-needed rest.

He drifts off easily, only waking to the sound of Sasuke knocking on his door.

“Come eat, Niisan!” he calls out.

Heeding the call, Itachi gets out of bed, stretching out and heading to the kitchen. As he sits and eats dinner with his family, he feels hopeful in a way he hasn’t in years. His mother and father are both quieter than usual, but Itachi figures they just need time to accept what he’s done.

“Hey Niisan, I finished all my homework!” Sasuke chirps. “It’s all done so we can get ice cream after dinner, right?!” 

Itachi nods, smiling at his little brother.

“Of course.”

True to his word, Itachi takes Sasuke out and buys him his favorite ice cream- strawberry, of course. He gets a vanilla one for himself, and they walk around aimlessly with their cones, enjoying the warm sunset. Sasuke radiates happiness, making little kittenish sounds of contentment with each little lick.

Itachi admires the brilliant red and gold sunset, mulling over the future in his mind.

Besides his parents, Sarutobi is the only one who knows what he’s done. He already knows his mother and father won’t tell, but Sarutobi-

Well, it would be bad for the clan if that bit of news got out. And beyond that- Hiruzen seems to have done nothing of worth for the village in quite awhile. That could be dangerous, if some other village realized how ineffectual the Hokage has become.

He hums low, lost in thought.

Sarutobi is old. Old enough to be prone to accidents, right? So if he were to take a tragic fall down the stairs, nobody would suspect foul play. It would just be a horrible accident, a sad and sudden end to the village’s beloved leader. If he were out of the way, the village could select a leader who wouldn’t jeopardize its strength.

Ah, but that can wait. Right now, Itachi has better things to do with his time.

“Niisan?”

“Hm?”

“Can you help me with my shuriken training tomorrow?”

Itachi tousles Sasuke’s unkempt hair, and nods.

(The village takes precedence over everything else in his life- everything, that is, except for his beloved little brother. If Itachi has to set all of Konoha ablaze to keep Sasuke warm, he won't hesitate to do so.)

“Anything you want, Sasuke.”


End file.
